Functionalism views society as a system of interconnected parts that work together to maintain stability. It explains social structure in terms of statuses, roles, and how socialization teaches people to perform their roles. Conflict theory sees society as based around competition and power struggles between social classes. Symbolic interactionism focuses on how people interact and attach meaning to symbols, and how the self and society are social constructs that develop through taking on the perspectives of others.

2. • It originally attempted to explain social institutions as means to
fill individual biological needs.
• Society consists of parts (e.g. Family, police, hospitals, schools
and others), each of which have their own functions and work
together to promote social stability.
• Functionalism explains society in terms of structure and
functions.
• Social structure refers to the interdependent networks of
statuses and roles.
• Associated with each status is a set of expectations that
comprises a general idea of appropriate behavior.
• Role performance and behavior are learned through the
socialization process.

3. • Parsons emphasized that for
societies to survive, they must
be able to provide for the social
needs of its member. Various
institution in the society must
work together to preserve the
system over time.
• Merton identified the functions
of social system: Manifest
(intended or recognized), Latent
(unintended or unrecognizable)
• He added that not all functions
of a social system ensure its
equilibrium that might lead to
imbalance or disintegration of
the system.

4. • Society can be best studied through conflict and power struggle.
• Marx maintained that history was a series of class struggles
between the owners of production and the workers, the
dominant and the dominated, the powerful and ownership of
property, in which personal beliefs, cultural values, religious
dogmas, institutional organization, and class hierarchy are
reflected..
• Weber believed that economic dimension is a source of
inequality that eventually leads to conflict and viewed the
industrial revolution as the result of technological
advancements.
• The capitalist class will hold the economic power can decide
where, when, and how work will be done; while workers have
limited choices.

5. • Ralph Dahrendorf argued that conflict applies to all of social life. The
key to conflict is not in the economic but relations between superior or
the boss and the relations between the superior or the boss and the
subordinates over whom the boss tries to impose authority
• Neo-Marxist approach holds that the struggle between social classes is
inevitable and is the primary source of change.
• Feminist argued that gender is an element of social conflict, and thus a
change is necessary for people to achieve their human potential.
• Conflict theorist view society as being in a state of competition, conflict,
constraint, and change; that society is continually in a struggle for
improvement, neglecting its less conflictive and more integrative facets.

6. • Symbolic Interactionism is a theoretical approach to understanding the
relationship between humans and society.
• The basic notion of symbolic interactionism is that human action and
interaction are understandable only through the exchange of meaningful
communication or symbols.
1.Human beings act toward things on the basis of the meanings that
things have for them.
2.These meanings arise of out of social interaction .
3. Social action results from a fitting together of individual lines of
action.

7. •The objective world has no reality for humans, only subjectively-defined
objects have meaning.
•Meanings are not entities that are bestowed on humans and learned by
habituation. Instead, meanings can be altered through the creative
capabilities of humans, and individuals may influence the many meanings
that form their society.
•Human society is a social product.
• Reflected appraisals (Looking Glass Self)
-the ability to think about how other people see you or perceive
you.
Three Elements of Looking - Glass Self
• Our Imagination of our own appearance to the other person.
• Our Imagination of his judgment of that appearance.
• Some sort of self-feeling such as pride or mortification.

8. Child learns to act out an adult role.
• George Herbert Mead viewed society as the scene of interaction
where people relate to each other and exchange attitudes, reactions,
views and meanings.
I A sign of self-consciousness
Taking the role of others
Generalized others
Children takes the related roles of all
other members in a social situation.

9. Social self.
• George Herbert Mead viewed society as the scene of interaction
where people relate to each other and exchange attitudes, reactions,
views and meanings.
Self-awareness One learns to distinguish between
the “I” and “me”
Me
Self Represents the ideas that we have
our own attributes, capacities and
behavior.

10. Social self.
• George Herbert Mead viewed society as the scene of interaction
where people relate to each other and exchange attitudes, reactions,
views and meanings.
Self-awareness One learns to distinguish between
the “I” and “me”
Me
Self Represents the ideas that we have
our own attributes, capacities and
behavior.